Method of drying brick and tunnel therefor



Oct. 16, 1928.

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Patented Oct. 16, 1928.

UNITED 1,688,305 PAT-eur our/ics.

GLAUD n. FULLER, oF, NEW YORK, n. Y., AssrGNoR rrogiroaxmck HANDLING ooRroRA'rioN, or NEW Yoann: y., ACOBBQBATION OF'NEWYORK.

:1i/ramoner DRYING BRICK AND rUNNeL assesses Appl'catlonfiled April 23, 19:27. K4Serialwlyno. 186,198.

lMy present invention relates to the manufacture of brick and more particularly to an improved method of and apparatus ordrying brick. l p

1n the Amanui'acture of brick, and particularly Vseit mud brick, 4an` important and, at present, expensive operatioiris the partial drying of the brick priorto'building the saine intoa kiln for burning. Various methods have been devise/dior performing this necessary operation and numbers of piecesof apparatus have also been devised for `this pur# pose. All prior methods andk apparatus are so iinecoiiomical asto be'tooexpensiveforthe ordinary brick plant` and consequently this important operation is oftentimes neglected entirely Iand also is iinpeijfectly `done.yvith the .result-,that the loss from breakage is eX- treinely high. In brick plants a large amount of heat from 'furnaces "and the like goes to waste'annually and Aat the present `time no efficient means or method is provided for utilizingthis Wasteheat.

. lnmy present invention I have devised an improved method for. drying brick and 'utilize the- Waste heat from the usual poiyer plant of the yard. In carrying out inyinvention, I preferably employ atuiinel capable of holding any desired number of cars,loadeledw with pallets oibrick, such tunnelpreerably being -associated Wi ththe smoke flue of the yard power plant and enclose suchdsinofke flue in a chamber, such chamber having associated therewith power driven ivans iiorcreating a circulation ci air Within the flue surrounding chamber, and for forcing such heated `air into ,and around the brick in the tunnel.

",he principal object .of myinvention, therefore, is an improved method Aorf drying brick. n l

Another object .of my invention is an im- ,proved method of vdrying bric-k and altiinnel therefor. v Other objects and novel features of the. construction and arrangement of parte com ,prising the improved tunnel Will ,appearjas the description of the invention progresses. L1n the accompanying` drawings illustr`atingthe preferredembodiment of the tunnel structure and by means Aof Whichiny iinproved method may be carried out,`

Figml is a kplan view, partly 4in section; Fig. 2 is an enlarged plan View` of the `riqjlitshand end of the structure shown yiny 4 4 of Fig. a f

Referring to the drawings, `10 Adesignates an elongated tunnel provided with l,trac'kscll running longitudinally thereof, 'such-l tracks f beingf spaced apart lroin each other and aydapteclto receive the supporting `xvheels 12 ofabrick carrying car 13. The brick carrying car 13 substantially fillsvthe heightland breadth of 'the tunnel 10, asclearlyshowiilin Fig. 3. and such brick carrying caris adapted toh'old alplturality of super-imposed aiidparallelly arranged pallets 111, 'Y on ,which are ineiinted tliegrey'en brick lto he dried.r ,'lllie 'tracks 11, asstated above, exteiidlongitudiiially of the tunnel 10 andare fsuppzortedon a /platforn'i 15 constitutingthe' floor of the `tunnel and in this platform 'ati intervals 'along the length thereofarelholes,16. The spacing between holesr 16 is substantially equa-l tothe space'betiveen the cars 13, sothat, `ivlien the ,tunnel Il()` is. nlledWithfcarathereWill be a hole 16 directly beneath each car. acent to the top 18 yof the tunnel, is a platfo'rniil,

this `pljfi'tfi'irifn extendiiig throughout the length lof the 'tunnel' tand',being1 provided with holes 2Q, similar in iiunibbrandl position ,to the holes 16.' 'At the' top ofitlife" tunnel `is formed an elongated chamber1(9idividedinto aplurality of sections by"`cross` \valls '120% i The inner Wall 'of the tunnel y1() forms one ofthe Walls of a chamber 21 surrounding the smoke fluevQQlof the power ,plant ofthe brick yard. ',Adjacen't tothe top` of the chamber 21"*is a ceiling or WallQBthat forms the bot# `template of' aiectangiilar chamber ,24,.thc top 1S oftlietunnel vor'ining `the top `Wall i.of `such chamberl This rectangularchamber `221 chamber 10 and `the* chamber 19 y and commupiirposeto be hereinafter@described The iottoin of they `chamber.21"isfformed oa ..flooi 2G `Vwhich Vis spaced apart' from the 'groiind 5and deiines the upperfvall of `af longir i i f '95 extends parallel to 'the chamberA 21 yand the l ftudinal 'passage ,27 tha'tlies) under 4andpaipialleltto, tliechainber 2l..

I5eneatliy the floor 1bV is "ane Y lber 2 which isdivided'into a plurality vof'sec- `ytionsfby,crossfWalls 3 and which communicates with the chamber l-Oby.v ,holes4 16; Also [Seid chamber. 2 ceinmuiefites with the Outer I lcagatedham- ,air byh'oles4an'd with the chamber 21 by holes 5. c. y Y

Spaced apart from each other and from the chamber 21,- but lying parallel to suchchamber are a plurality of `fans 28. The

- number of fans 28 may be any desired` but for a dryer of the usual capacity I utilize preferably six fans. Inv speaking of the "fusual capacity, the dryer chamber or tunnellOis made long enough vto contain forty cars13, and the'cars 13 areof such length and capacity asfto require a; tunnel 13 of'approximately 340 feet;l Each fan' 28 is providedV with a discharge conduit 29 enipting into 4the longitudinal .chamber 24, and from thence ,throughy the passages intothe sections of the chamber19. The intake endY of each fan 28 is connected by conduit 30 to the longitudinaly chamber 21. Adjacent the entrance yof each of the fans 28 is located a radiator31 connectedby suitable, piping 4(not shown) to Vtheeirhauststeam pipe rof the dryer plant.

Referring to Fig. 1, it will be noted that c adjacent tothe right-hand end of the tunnel 10 is an extension 33 provided on its top face with perforations 34 communicating with the outer air, and by means of which air is admitted vtoynot yonly thefportion 33, but` with the end sectionA of thechamber 2. This eX- tension or portion 33 constitutes either a heatingor coolingchamber, as may be desired.

Preferably,however,this extension or portion '33 1s used as a cooling chamber and the `air passing through. the perforations 34 pas'sesov'er the` heatedV bricks and cools said bricks down to atmospheric temperature and the heat'thus'eXtractedis passed on with the air and is utilized for drying the wet brick.

This feature enables me to increase the speed rat which the 'cars can be'run through the dryer and also enables me to utilize a large `amountof the heatwhich would be otherwise Wasted.

v Referring to Fig. 3 ink connection with Fig. 1, t-he-right-hand fan 28 takes heated airfronithe chamber 21e-andindirectly from the auxiliary Chamber 33-through the conduit 30 and forces such air through-the outlet `29 lintoethe ychamber 24, through the passage25, `into the chamberr 19. From thev chamber 19, such air under light pressure passes through the orifices 2O and in a down-l ward direction through the bricks stacked y Aonthe dryer cars 13 and thence downwardly i throughtheoriices 16, from whence it passes into the chamber 21, coming in 'Contact with theheated exhaust flue fromthe power plant.

YAir from the outside also passes throughfthe holes 4 intothe chamber 21. As it is neces- L sary toadd additional at each sectionof Y. thedryer, rsuchair" is admitted at atmospheric l vtemperature through the openings r4. As the warmy air leaving the tunnel 10', throughy open-k K l.ings 16, is practically saturated, the relatively cool outside air, coming in through the open# to building the same into a kiln.

4Having thus described my invention, what ings 4, reduces the temperature ofthe saturated warm air to below the dew point and the moisture is thus extracted from the air' and falls into` a trough 15a secured to a lower partitionvlb beneath the platform or floorv 15 and this trough 15ZL leads the moisture to any desired point. Thefsecond fan measured from rightto left also working, will draw heated air from the chamber 21, which air passes through the conduit 30 over the heating pipes 31, through the rsecond fan 28, the outlet 29, across'the chamber 24, and through' the passage 25, into the chamber 19 and from thence to the orices-20 downward through the tunnel 10,. the cars 13, the 'orifice 16 and into the chamber 21 again. This sequence of operations will be performed consecutivelygbyA each of ythe vsucceeding fans28 .i

hand end of thel chamber 21 or thetunnel `10vv eating passage of air. This manner of plac ing the pallets causesthe air to travel downi ward, as indicatechina zigzagged course'and each pallet'of brick is exposed tothe full current of air, thereby insuring more uniform and rapid` drying. u

By using the air a plurality of times and reheating the air after what might be termed each use or operation; thereof, by means of ywaste heat from the power plant atthe brick yard, I am enabled to kperform the drying operation on the bricks at a minimum cost and the appara-tus by' which I am enabled to do this is compact and relatively inexpensive to build and to maintain. In anapparatusof this kind where the smoke `line' is approxi-v mately 340feet to 350 feet long, and where the air utilized for drying the brick is repeatedly heated by the spent gases passing through the lexhaust `flue, -a very economical way is obtained and the exhaust gases vin their passage" hfougli the exhaust flue are reduced in temperature frein approximately'() degrees down to 200 degrees. `This heat, therefore, which formerly has been wasted is utilized to good advantage in the drying 'of I claim as new is:

1, An improved dryer for brick and the like brick prior comprising a tunnel open top and bottom, an i air heating chamber arranged parallel thereto, means for'heat-ing said chamber, 'a plurality of blowers spaced apart from the tun-` nel, and connected thereto, said blowers being so arranged with respect to said tunnel and said heating chamber as to cause a downward movement of heated air through a plurality or points in ay tunnel simultaneously and means for reheating the air prior tol eaeh downward movement.

2. That improved method of continuous drying or bricks which consists in forcing 10 heated air downward through a line of bricks at aplurality of points, and subjecting the heated saturated air after its passage through the brick to the cooling effect of cold air :t'or the purpose of condensing the moisture therein and afterwards utilizing the partially dried and heated air together with the cold air to dry other bricks.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

CLAUD E. FULLER. 

